The Personnel Vetting Questionnaire (PVQ) is a form designed to modernize and streamline the federal personnel vetting process. It consolidates and replaces the previous Standard Forms—SF-85, SF-85P, and SF-86—into a unified, modular format.
William Henderson, ClearanceJobs news contributor, brought up an interesting point on the ClearanceJobsBlog:
The SF86 asks for an applicant’s gender, height, weight, color hair, and color of eyes. The older DD Form 398, which was used prior to the mid-1990s, also asked for race. After the change from the DD398 to the SF86, the absence of race sometimes caused problems during a neighborhood investigation.
NEIGHBOR: I don’t recognize the name Morgan Taylor Wilson. Was he the black guy who lived across the street about a year ago?
INVESTIGATOR: I don’t know Morgan Wilson’s race.The new PVQ, which should be fully implement before next spring, does not ask for gender, race, height, weight, color of hair, or color of eyes.
NEIGHBOR: I don’t recognize the name Morgan Taylor Wilson. Was he the black man who lived across the street about a year ago?
INVESTIGATOR: I don’t know Morgan Wilson’s race.
NEIGHBOR: There was a couple living there last year. The woman was polite and courteous, but the man was a jerk. Was Morgan a man or a woman?
INVESTIGATOR: I don’t know Morgan Wilson’s gender.
NEIGHBOR: The man was about 6’4”, 210 and considerably bigger than the woman.
INVESTIGATOR: I don’t know Morgan Wilson’s height or weight.
NEIGHBOR: What do you know about Morgan Wilson?
INVESTIGATOR: Morgan Wilson was 30 years old. Other than that I can’t disclose anything about the person.How do you think this will this affect neighborhood investigations? How will it affect police records checks when there’s a record with a slight variation in the name or date of birth, but you can’t compare secondary identifiers (gender, height, weight, eyes, hair)?
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Key Updates in the PVQ
Many investigators note that these secondary identifiers would likely only prove useful in rare cases, and they are never to disclose these identifiers to subjects while canvassing neighborhoods anyway.
Approved a few years ago, and piloted by agencies now as part of the Trusted Workforce 2.0 initiative, the PVQ is structured into a few different parts:
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General information, residences, education, employment, and other foundational data.
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Questions on alcohol use, financial records, and foreign travel.
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Foreign contacts, psychological health, and serious criminal convictions.
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Psychological and emotional health.
This modular approach allows agencies to select relevant sections based on the sensitivity and risk level of the position, enhancing efficiency and reducing redundancy.
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Marijuana Use: The PVQ distinguishes between marijuana and other illegal drugs, reflecting changing societal norms. Applicants are asked about marijuana use within the past 90 days, a shift from the previous seven-year timeframe in the SF-86. However, federal law still prohibits marijuana use, and agencies may interpret this differently.
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Mental Health: Efforts to reduce stigma continue, with the PVQ focusing on hospitalizations and treatments within the past five years, rather than lifetime mental health history.
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Gender-Inclusive Language: The form adopts gender-neutral terminology and removes questions about gender and Selective Service registration, aligning with inclusivity goals and recognizing that such information can be obtained through other means.
As of May 2025, the PVQ is not yet in active use across the DoD. The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) is working to integrate the PVQ into the new eApp web portal, part of the National Background Investigation Services (NBIS) system. Until this integration is complete, applicants will continue to use the existing SF-85, SF-85P, and SF-86 forms.
While the PVQ is not yet operational, it’s advisable for applicants and security professionals to familiarize themselves with its structure and content. Understanding the changes can help in preparing for future background investigations and ensuring compliance with evolving federal guidelines.
This question was posed from a subscriber at ClearanceJobsBlog.com, where you can read and discuss government security clearance process, how to get a security clearance job, and background investigations issues.
Much about the clearance process resembles the Pirate’s Code: “more what you’d call guidelines than actual rules.” This case-by-case system is meant to consider the whole person, increase process security, and allow the lowest-risk/highest-need candidates to complete the process. This article is intended as general information only and should not be construed as legal advice. Consult an attorney regarding your specific situation.
